Pebble in a pond
by moonswirl
Summary: After the events of the finale, Rory goes to Europe with Emily for the summer. What will happen when she gets back? Also, Luke and Lorelai have the start of their relationship at last...
1. P A little away time is always needed

PEBBLE IN A POND  
  
Disclaimer: Not mine, but wouldn't that be fun if it was? ;) Dreams, dreams, dreams...  
  
Rating: Mm... probably G, but to be safe, PG  
  
Pairings: L/L, R/D  
  
Spoilers: Up to season four finale  
  
Summary: After the events of the finale, Rory goes to Europe with Emily for the summer. What will happen when she gets back? Also, Luke and Lorelai have the start of their relationship at last...  
  
--  
  
PROLOGUE  
  
Lorelai went out on the porch to find her daughter hunched over on the front lawn, crying. She wished beyond anything she could have prevented this, yet there they were. She slowly made her way to her side and sat at her side, never saying or doing anything. Finally, Rory lifted her head slightly.  
  
"I want to go with Grandma."  
  
"Okay," she spoke simply, then, "Rory?"  
  
"Don't. Please."  
  
"Okay," she said again. "I'll give her a call." Lorelai stood and made her way back to the door, taking one last glance to her baby girl before going inside. She took the phone and went to stand at the window. She dialed and was grateful her parents didn't have caller ID. After how they left things that night, they may not have picked up. Then she remembered her mother may not have been at home. So she hung up with a sigh and dialed up the hotel. They patched her through to the room and she waited.  
  
"Yes?" came her mother's voice. She did not sound too eager to talk to anyone.  
  
"Mom, it's Lorelai, please don't hang up." There was a pause. "Mom?"  
  
"I'm here. What is it, Lorelai?"  
  
"Does the Europe offer still stand?"  
  
THE NEXT MORNING  
  
"Rory?" Lorelai knocked on her daughter's bedroom door. "Grandma's here."  
  
"I'll be right out," Rory called back.  
  
"I made you some coffee for the road."  
  
"Thanks."  
  
"Sure." Lorelai went to sit at the kitchen table and placed her head in her hand. Last night had been so wonderful, magical really. And then she'd come home and it was a whole other story. She felt for Rory, but she couldn't help smiling whenever the memory of those kisses came back to her mind, and that was at least once every five minutes. The conflict was giving her a headache and she just wanted it to go away.  
  
"Lorelai, I'm waiting," Emily Gilmore came walking into the kitchen. Her daughter looked back at her. She dropped the tone. "Lorelai?"  
  
"Take care of her, Mom. Alright?"  
  
"Of course," Emily nodded. Rory's bedroom door opened and she walked out, pulling on a suitcase.  
  
"I'm ready."  
  
"I'll take this to the car," Emily said, taking the bag and leaving the two for their goodbyes. Lorelai hesitated for a second, but finally just pulled Rory into her arms.  
  
"If you need… anything… you call me, okay? Day or night, I'll pay for it, it's okay." Rory nodded. She pulled back and looked into her eyes. "Honey… Try to have a good summer, alright?" She nodded again. Lorelai kissed her cheeks and finally released her. They walked off to the front yard, and Rory got in the car with Emily. Lorelai watched them go with a sigh. She had to get out of there. And she knew where she wanted to be.  
  
LUKE'S APARTMENT  
  
He'd gotten home late after having to get Kirk back safely and making sure he wouldn't run off again. When he got back, he was exhausted. He made the call to have someone stand in for him down in the diner so he could at least have some sleep. Not that he would get it after what he'd had to leave behind the previous night to follow Kirk.  
  
There was a knock at the door, knocking him out of his thoughts. "Just a minute," he called. He got up and got dressed as fast as he could. He didn't know how but he knew who it was. And he was right. He opened the door to find… "Lorelai. Hey." She didn't speak, simply walked by him and went to sit at the table. "Is everything alright? Rory…?"  
  
"She's fine… sort of. She's off to Europe with my mother."  
  
"Oh," he came to sit next to her.  
  
"Not that that's a problem. Comparing to the rest, that's just peachy."  
  
"What's up?" Lorelai shook her head.  
  
"Can't say now… Mother-daughter confidentiality clause."  
  
"Got it," he nodded. They were silent, then they looked at each other and they knew the subject had shifted. "About last night…" he started.  
  
"Yeah…" she breathed with a smile. He smiled back.  
  
"So I was thinking… we could do the whole movie thing like… tomorrow night?"  
  
"I think I'd like that," she continued to smile.  
  
"Then it's a date?" he tempted.  
  
"It's a date," she nodded.  
  
What will happen next? Stay tuned and find out lol I'm not sure if I'll move to the end of the summer already or something else. What do you guys think? 


	2. 1 It had to be you, wonderful you, it ha...

CHAPTER 1 - It had to be you, wonderful you, it had to be you...  
  
Lorelai awoke the next morning from a dream which frankly was a little disturbing. At first it had been wonderful... and then it just got weird.  
  
She was standing in a forest, it was a beautiful sunny day. She wore a gorgeous summer dress and her hair was being very good to her, which always meant good things. She walked around for a while, barefoot no less. And then she came upon something.  
  
It was Stars Hollow, she knew that's what it was, but only because the signs and people were there. Everything looked kind of... renaissance-ish. The buildings, the clothes, but at the same time it was still her good old Stars Hollow.  
  
And then there'd been Luke. Oh, Luke... He rode, yes rode, toward her on a horse. He wore flannel period clothes, and to top it off, what you could have called a period cap. It was as though he'd been a character on those cartoon shows where the characters moved in time so their clothes were simply a variation of their regular ensemble. Totally odd.  
  
"Quick, get on," he told her as he stopped next to her.  
  
"Why? What's the matter?" she asked.  
  
"Would you just..." finally he sighed and pulled her up behind him. "Hold on!" He got the horse going again and as she held on to him she wondered what on earth was going on. That's when she heard the sound of coming horses. She turned her head and saw them coming. Each horse held one of their fellow Stars Hollow citizens.  
  
"Luke, what's going on?"  
  
And that was always when she woke up. She'd had this dream for a few days now and it was starting to freak her out. On that morning when she woke from it, she wanted to tell Rory about it, and then she remembered... Rory was probably in Paris or Rome or something right now. She stuffed her head into her pillow with a small whimper.  
  
Then she smelled something... food? How could that be? Rory wasn't there, she wasn't down there, so how could there be cooking? She got up and slowly tiptoed down to the kitchen. She was one with the wall as she slid along until the corner, then dared a peek around. She sighed of relief and breathed in the bacon and eggs as she walked into the kitchen proper.  
  
"What on earth? Why Luke Danes, I'm shocked. Breaking into a lady's home like this and making her breakfast. Why that's just scandalous..." she spoke with a lilt to her voice. He hadn't yet looked over but was putting a plate of what he'd made on the table. "... and delicious," she finished with a grin. He finally took in her appearance, in her light PJs and she could swear he blushed for half a second.  
  
"Well, I figured I owed you after running off the other night, so..." he sort of smiled, turning back to get her some coffee.  
  
"Hey," she grinned, taking his hand. He turned to her and she kissed him. Both were nothing but smiles after that as she sat to breakfast and finally joined her to eat a minute later.  
  
"Well, I'm afraid I have some bad news. I walked by the theater this morning and they're closed tonight."  
  
"What? But they're never closed. Never. Not even when Pete broke his thumbs trying to beat Kirk in that video game war they had, he just kept 'em coming."  
  
"I don't know, I didn't ask." There was a pause. "So what do we do about tonight?" She thought for a second, took a few bites of her meal, drank a sip of coffee. Then she nodded to herself.  
  
"Okay, I got it. Here's what we'll do. You go to the video store and find two movies you absolutely love. It can be anything. I'll do the same. Then tonight we'll come here and we'll watch the movies. It could be interesting, you know?"  
  
"Alright, I like that," he nodded.  
  
"You do?"  
  
"Yeah. Don't sound so surprised," he raised an eyebrow.  
  
"I'm not," she assured him. "So it's a deal?"  
  
"Deal."  
  
"Good. Let's strike on it," she held up her coffee cup. He did the same and they struck cups. This would be interesting for sure. She wondered which movies he'd pick.  
  
--  
  
Alright, it's short, I know, but that's all I could manage in this time I had... but I'll continue tomorrow. Coming up, the movie date :) If you'd like to suggest movies, go right ahead, I could use some help there ;) Thanks for the comments guys and keep 'em coming :) 


	3. 2 Loaded snack table, four movies, and w...

Okay, first off, another big thank you for all the input!  
  
A little obvious, but it still needs to be mentioned and stuff, so: Movies, not mine. I put s at the end of all the quote bits just in case.  
  
Have fun!  
  
CHAPTER 2 - Loaded snack table, four movies, and we're off!  
  
Lorelai ran into the house, pulling on her bags as she threw her shoes off and ran into the kitchen. She had to hurry or she wouldn't be ready before he arrived, and that was not something she wanted to happen, not in the least.  
  
First up, she went to shower. She dressed in a casual but sensible way, fixed her hair in much the same style, then headed back into the kitchen. She put together her end of the food for the night. She knew Luke had said he'd bring in some stuff from the diner. She set it all up and placed the movies next to the couch.  
  
Looking at all this, she couldn't help but think about a similar night of nervousness. She thought of the night a few short years ago where she'd invited Dean over for movie night. Rory... How had they gotten to this?  
  
She went to the computer to see if by any chance she'd sent her an e-mail. And as luck would have it, there was a message waiting for her.  
  
Dear Mom,  
  
Grandma and I are in Milan now. She's taken me to see a lot of places, and we ran into this couple she knew. They have a summer house here and they invited us to come spend a few days. I thought you'd like to know how everything's going, so here it is. I'm okay. I think this trip will be good for me. I know thing are kind of weird with us right now, but I hope that will change soon. Say hi to everyone in Stars Hollow for me, okay? And please talk to Grandpa? He shouldn't be alone like this.  
  
I love you Mom  
  
Rory  
  
PS: How's Luke?  
  
She smiled to herself a bit. She really missed her little girl right now. She should be here with her through this. But there was nothing she could do about it now. She printed the e-mail, went to put it on her night table then came back down to sit in the living room and wait.  
  
A few minutes later, there was a knock at the door. "Come in!" she called out. The door opened and closed and Luke walked in. He'd dressed up. Not overly fancy, but still not a regular Luke ensemble. "Wow, looking good," she grinned. He smiled and set down the bags of food on the table and the movies on the other end of the couch.  
  
"Well, I figured..." he shrugged.  
  
"Come on," she patted the spot next to her on the couch. "Let's get this party started. What do you have?" she tried to see through the movie bag. He picked them up and fished the first tape box out.  
  
"Mr. Smith goes to Washington? Uh..." she nodded.  
  
"Is that okay?" She nodded again, then gave another head nudge toward the bag. He looked in it, then got the second tape. She read the title and her jaw dropped into a smile.  
  
"My fair lady? Luke, you old softie," she batted at his arm lightly.  
  
"Saw it with my mother when I was a kid and it just sort of stayed in my mind."  
  
"That's nice," she smiled. Then she perked up, sitting up as she grabbed her own movie bag. "Wanna see what I got?" He nodded. "Okay well first, a classic," she handed him a tape. "And yes, I just might dance along."  
  
"Footloose. I've actually never seen this."  
  
"No!" she put on a face of 'utter' shock.  
  
"What else?" he changed the subject. She perked again.  
  
"Well, this here will be to close out the evening, a perfect snuggle fest if you're up for it."  
  
"What do you mean? You didn't get a..." he waved his hand around, the words not coming out. If they did come out, he would get pictures in his head he wasn't sure he was ready for.  
  
"Relax, Luke, we're not quite there yet. Here," she gave him her second movie.  
  
"The Ghost and Mr. Chicken?" he looked back at her and she giggled.  
  
"You'll love it, I promise."  
  
A few hours went by as the food diminished. First they watched 'Mr. Smith goes to Washington'.  
  
"A day?!"  
  
"Yes. Just Tonight."  
  
"Tonight... I don't want to seem like I'm complaining, Senator, but in all civilized countries there's an institution called dinner."   
  
"Hear, hear!" Lorelai nodded, grabbing a few fries from her plate. Next, they watched 'Footloose'.  
  
"You like Men At Work?"  
  
"Where do they work?"  
  
"No, they're a music group. How about The Police?"  
  
"I seen them."  
  
"In Concert?"  
  
"No, behind you."   
  
As promised, Lorelai danced. She even managed to convince Luke to join her in one dance. She showed him the moves and soon he had it all figured out. It was quite a sight to see, the 'wish I had a camera 'cause no one'll believe me!' type of moment. Next, it was 'My Fair Lady', which Lorelai watched from beginning to end with her head on Luke's shoulder.  
  
"And remember, that's your handkerchief and that's your sleeve. And don't confuse the one with the other if you want to become a lady in a shop."   
  
"Mm, good point," Lorelai nodded up to Luke.  
  
"Makes sense," he nodded back down.  
  
"Absolutely."  
  
Finally, they settled in for their final movie, "The Ghost and Mr. Chicken".  
  
"Calm? Do 'murder' and 'calm' go together? Calm and murder? Murder?"   
  
By the end of that final movie, the table had nearly been polished from any hint of food and the two of them were getting quite comfy sitting on the floor against the couch. Luke had his arm around Lorelai and she was comfortably settled there. When the credits rolled through, Lorelai yawned and looked at Luke.  
  
"So how did you like your night? Two thumbs up?"  
  
"Yeah. We should do this again sometimes."  
  
"We should, we should." There was a moment of silence.  
  
"I-I should..."  
  
"Yeah." Slowly they parted and stood. They stood in front of each other, big smiles on both their faces. "Well, good night Luke... I really had a great time."  
  
"Me too." They leaned in for a goodnight kiss, taking all they could from it. They knew it was too early to go any further than that, but it didn't mean they weren't thinking about it. "Good night." He took his movies and hers, assuring he'd take them all back himself, then after a final look he left. Lorelai stood there for a while, just smiling to herself.  
  
"Well... I could get used to that..."  
  
--  
  
Wow, I almost didn't have time to finish this today, but I did it! Next up: The grand opening of the Dragonfly Inn and more! 


	4. 3 Big gold scissors

CHAPTER 3 - BIG GOLD SCISSORS  
  
TWO WEEKS LATER  
  
Lorelai had been up since three in the morning. Today was the day, the one she'd waited to come for more years than she liked to admit. Today they were having the Inn's grand opening. This time they were ready, they had doors, and the staff crisis had been promptly dealt with.  
  
After a quick shower, she dressed and headed down for her car. She'd grab something to eat at the Inn, at their Inn. She got in her car and drove to the Dragonfly. Upon her arrival she was surprised to find Luke there, in the process of fixing a big red ribbon in front of the stairs.  
  
"And what are you up to?" she asked with a smile.  
  
"Well, it is the opening, tradition is in order." He bent down and retrieved a pair of golden scissors. She seemed excited.  
  
"When did you get all traditiony? Taylor'll be all over you, every festival, holiday, new shipments, he's gonna be on your case..."  
  
"Hey, I'll deal with it." She nodded with a smirk. "So I know why I'm here at four in the morning, why are you here at four in the morning?" She shrugged.  
  
"Hello, I am a morning person and who am I kidding I can't even get that out, but big events get me excited and I can't sleep. I mean you've seen me on Christmas Eve, forget it, I kick sleep to the curb like it's a rotten turkey."  
  
"I see."  
  
"You don't happen to have any coffee hidden back there, do you?"  
  
"No, but I could make you some."  
  
"This is so great. Boyfriend and expert coffee maker all rolled up in one. I'm the luckiest girl in the world," she kissed him before they ducked the red ribbon and walked into the Inn. They looked around in silence. "I can't believe it's finally happening."  
  
"The Inn?"  
  
"Yeah. I mean we've been working toward it for years on end, and then a little while longer getting it all set up, but it never seemed real yet. Now..." she smiled.  
  
They took another moment, then went into the kitchen. Imagine their surprise when they found Sookie there, sleeping on a chair by the stove. Lorelai put a finger to her lips to tell Luke to keep quiet and she approached her slumbering friend. She knew her enough to be careful when she woke her up.  
  
"Sookie? Honey, wake up," she told her, staying clear off her arms.  
  
"Stir clockwise!" she blurted as she awoke, not quite balanced. Lorelai reached over to settle her back.  
  
"It's okay, it's me."  
  
"Lorelai! Hey... I was just..." She spotted Luke behind her and turned to her friend. "What are you two doing here?"  
  
"I was about to ask you the same thing."  
  
"Oh, I was waiting for a package."  
  
"At four in the morning?"  
  
"You never know." Lorelai nodded.  
  
"Luke?"  
  
"Coffee, on it," he nodded. Lorelai turned back to Sookie with a grin.  
  
"It's almost time, how do you feel?"  
  
"Like I'm gonna throw up." Lorelai took a step back.  
  
"Relax, everything will be great." A few minutes later, Luke set down a couple of cups of coffee in front of the girls, his own cup of tea already ready. "To the Inn!" Lorelai held up her cup.  
  
"To the Inn," Sookie and Luke repeated, as they struck cups.  
  
Lorelai looked at Luke and he smiled. Sookie didn't notice, not that she'd have known why it was making them smile. Over the last two weeks, they'd gone out three more times. By now the whole town was aware of their relationship. They were supportive, but also a little insistent. It was hard to have a quiet lunch when there were whispers from nearby.  
  
Other whispers were being passed over the mystery of Rory's departure. Thankfully no one had found out the circumstances, but the fact that they were unknown left things open for much speculation, which Lorelai avoided as best she could.  
  
A few hours later, the staff had arrived and was getting ready. Guests would be arriving soon, and the small ceremony they'd prepared to take place when guests first walked in was about to start. The townspeople had come in numbers and were standing by in excitement. Lorelai, Sookie, and Luke would cut the ribbon together, as they all had a part in this. Kirk had volunteered to document the event.  
  
After the ceremony, the 'audience' departed and the guests began to settle in. Everything was going according to schedule. Everything was great, so why was Lorelai feeling sad. Deep down she knew. She wanted Rory to be there.  
  
Just as she'd thought it, a voice spoke from behind. "Hey Lorelai, delivery for you." She turned to find the delivery man with a small box and flowers.  
  
"Wow, thank you." She put the box down and got the card from the flowers.  
  
"Congratulations on the Inn. To many years of success and happiness." And below these words, she recognized her father's signature.  
  
She'd gone to see him a few times. Things were awkward to say the least. Things had been different between them for some time now, and she knew it wasn't pleasing either of them, but neither seemed ready to make the first step.  
  
She opened the box, seeing the stamp from Amsterdam told her who it was from, which made the box the poor victim of quick opening. The first thing on top was a letter. Half of it was written by her mother, the other half by Rory. She read it quietly, finding out from it what was in the box. The two of them had gathered a small amount of lucky charms from their different locations. She smiled and decided to hang them up around the inn. One by the door, one at the desk, one in the kitchen... two in the kitchen, one in the stable, and one by the stairs.  
  
She returned to the desk as the phone rang. She breathed deep and answered.  
  
"Dragonfly Inn, Lorelai speaking. How may I help you?"  
  
--  
  
Okay, so there you have it :) Now what should happen next? More summer, or should we move to the end of the summer and Rory's return? I'm open to suggestions :) 


End file.
